Alyssa Healy has executed brilliant back-to-back centuries to guide her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, motivating them to a dominant 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained not out on 113 runs, arriving just four days after her equally impressive 142 that saw off the Indian team at the identical Vizag venue. This time, she combined in an unbroken double-century opening partnership with her opening partner (84no) to chase to their goal of 199 runs in just 24.5 deliveries.
“I felt I was a not at my best with the gloves, and probably a little bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll take the two points and move on,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of Thursday’s run-chase as the pair added 202 followed possibly the team's poorest performance in the field under Healy’s leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for spilling two of the half-dozen chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my wicketkeeping, and I had a little bit to make up for with the bat, and luckily succeeded,” Healy continued.
From the time data was first recorded on fielding statistics in 2013, the six dropped catches marked Australia’s worst fielding display at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a little while, and it’s an issue we’ll reflect on,” Healy commented.
This allowed the opposition to eke out 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest score in an One-Day International against Australia, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the maiden fifty ever for the Bangladeshi team against the world champions.
But Alana King mesmeric continuous 10-over bowling performance, in which she claimed 2-18 with four maiden overs, was crucial to ensuring Australia’s target wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Confirms Knockout Place
Healy was thrilled to discover that the victory, which puts her undefeated team top of the standings on nine points after four wins and a wash-out, secures them a berth in the last-four. “That’s really cool,” she said.
The 35-year-old skipper sped to her century off just 73 balls, the fastest hundred of the tournament, and finished with 20 boundaries off the 77 balls she faced as she accelerated from Litchfield in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone almost boundary-for-boundary towards their half-centuries.
The Opener Impresses with Maiden Tournament Fifty
The young batter Phoebe Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and one maximum, reaching to her maiden World Cup half-century off 46 deliveries soon after Healy got there off 43 balls. They went on to record the third-highest stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy dropped the easiest of chances off a teammate and also was unable to hold on to a tough lofted one off Annabel Sutherland. Annoyingly, she also take a clean catch off the same bowler but didn’t have it reviewed when the umpire turned down their shout.
The reinstated Darcie Brown sent down the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was nonetheless the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, going for 52 runs without a wicket off her nine overs.
Spinners Excel as Alana King Stars
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose spell could have been more successful if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slip cordon.
Other spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both contributed, while Annabel Sutherland strengthened her standing as the competition's top wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her tally to thirteen.
A batter's 44 runs and Mostary’s not out 66 runs off 80 deliveries took the team to their record total against the Aussies, but the target was rendered easy meat by a team who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side a few days before.
“It's great when you’ve got the ‘Q’ next to your name in a World Cup,” remarked player-of-the-match Alana King. “No doubt it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to going back to the next venue to take on England and South Africa.”
